Yoga Vasishtha's Forgotten Wisdom Can Rewire Modern Minds
The Yoga Vasishtha, one of the greatest works of ancient Indian philosophy, is a conversation between the wise teacher Vasishtha and young Shri Ram.
Composed millennia ago, this enormous scripture has more than 29,000 verses discussing the nature of reality, consciousness, and liberation. In contrast to better-known works such as the Bhagavad Gita, the Yoga Vasishtha has largely gone unexamined in modern times despite its extraordinary psychological insights.
ज्ञाता ज्ञानं तथा ज्ञेयं द्रष्टादर्शनदृश्यभूः । कर्ता हेतुः क्रिया यस्मात्तस्मै ज्ञस्यात्मने नमः ।।
He is the knower, the knowledge and all that is to be known. He is the seer, the act of seeing, and all that is to be seen. He is the actor, the cause and the effect: therefore, salutation to Him who is knowledge himself.
(Spandana Buddhavarapu)
This second verse in the Yoga Vasishtha captures its non-dualistic nature—that consciousness pervades all experience as subject, object, and their relationship.
The human mind often gets caught in intellectual fallacies. We become fixated on "why" questions that answer our momentary curiosity, without paying attention to the more transformative "how" questions that result in real understanding and development. The Yoga Vasishtha provides insight by explaining both our thoughts and patterns of reasoning, revealing the disconnect between sensed causes and real results.
When the adolescent Shri Ram encounters the Rishis and his father, Maharaj Dasharatha, he welcomes them with a maturity and calm one may not expect from youth. But beneath this serenity, the Rishis also see Sri Ram's deep inner struggle—unresolved questions regarding the universe, the mind, and their mysterious bond.
In Section 1, Chapters 11 and 12, Sri Ram expresses a conclusion that echoes strongly with our contemporary plight: all things in the world are contingent upon the mind. The mind makes connections between the objects and beings, but in reality, the mind itself is found to be unsubstantial. Sri Ram compares this phenomenon to a mirage—just as a parched desert traveler mistakes shimmering heat waves for water, we confuse our mental projections with reality.
Sri Ram's observation that "the mind runs in all directions seeking pleasure, yet is unable to find happiness anywhere" strikes at the heart of our modern dilemma. We chase happiness in social media approval, possessions, and status, the virtual equivalent of chasing mirages.
Though never before have humans had greater access to amusement, connection, and knowledge, research indicates increasing levels of depression, anxiety, and loneliness.
Consider the way we scroll through photos carefully curated from other people's lives, a phenomenon psychologists now refer to as "social media envy." The Yoga Vasishtha foresaw this by illustrating how the mind constructs misery by continuously comparing and craving what is absent.
Shri Ram's most piercing statement—that "the mind alone is the cause of all objects in the world. The world exists because the mind exists, and when the mind disappears, the world disappears too"—offers a radical perspective on our ordinary experience.
Contemporary neuroscience confirms that we don't experience the world directly but filter it through expectations, memory, and attention. Our digital surroundings amplify this effect, creating "filter bubbles" and "echo chambers" that reinforce our existing views and hide others.
When we relentlessly ask ourselves "why was I fired?" or "why did my relationship not work?" or "why aren't more people liking my posts?", we remain stuck in patterns of suffering.
The Yoga Vasishtha teaches us to redirect our focus from "why" to "how" - how can we respond effectively? How do we learn and grow? This shift moves us from a victim mentality toward agency.
Upon hearing Sri Ram's philosophical questions—questions which are also our own—Rishi Vasishtha offers profound wisdom that can free us from mental knots and constraints. He begins with a revolutionary statement: there is no distinction between mind and thought. The mind is not a repository for thoughts but is itself nothing more than thought activity.
Rishi Vasishtha describes the mind as that which causes the physical body to come into being, anticipating by millennia the psychosomatic insight that mental states affect physical health. He observes that only a few people have transcended the ego's incessant assertion of "I", the source of our suffering and limitation.
The dialogues of the Yoga Vasishtha illuminate why we find ourselves trapped in our own existential dilemmas. With each social media update, professional success, or purchase, we try to validate our isolated "I." But all this constant self-assertion makes us increasingly hollow and isolated.
The ancient scripture presents a different path: like Shri Ram, we can look inward to question our deepest assumptions about identity and meaning. Instead of "how can I gain more recognition?" we could ask "what is the greatest good I can do?" (“The Supreme Yoga”)
The verses of the Yoga Vasishtha offer more than abstract philosophy; they serve as a practical guide for navigating the complexities of contemporary consciousness. Through understanding the mind's tendency to create both problems and their apparent solutions, we gain the freedom to transcend its self-perpetuating cycles.
In our hyper-connected, yet increasingly isolated age, this ancient teaching reminds us that true connection and happiness don't come from virtual approval but from realizing that we are intimately connected to all of existence.
The questions we ask in examining these teachings become a path in themselves, leading us from the narrow view of the isolated self to the expansive understanding of our true essence.
By embracing the wisdom of the Yoga Vasishtha, we can begin to rewire our digital-age minds, transforming our relationship with technology from one of compulsive distraction to mindful engagement. In doing so, we may discover that the peace and fulfillment we've been seeking through external validation have been present within us all along, just as Rishi Vasishtha revealed to Shri Ram thousands of years ago.
References
- The Supreme Yoga – A New Translation of the Yoga Vaistha by Swami Venkatesananda
Spandana Buddhavarapu. “Chapter 1 - Introduction · Yoga Vasistham.”
Brief Author Bio
Jayati Raval conducts research on sustainability through studying Hindu philosophies and the Sanatan texts. Her research intersects connects ancient wisdom and current concerns together, providing novel insights for our modern predicaments at their intersection. She examines how established Sanatan knowledge can be used to inform sustainable living and offer resolutions to current concerns.
